


Rules

by manic_intent



Series: Pack Mentality [2]
Category: Chronicles of Riddick (2004)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-01-04
Updated: 2011-01-04
Packaged: 2017-10-14 19:13:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,161
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/152522
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/manic_intent/pseuds/manic_intent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vaako tries to lay down some ground rules.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rules

 

[A/N: This is part of my ongoing series in my headcanon, the other parts available under the chronicles of riddick tag in my livejournal.  The other parts don’t need to be read to understand this one.  Established open relationship where Dame Vaako is not a total bitch.  Riddick has already visited the Threshold.]

 

Rules

 

I

 

“This is still a _fleet_ , and on any fleet there have to be _rules_ ,” Vaako’s carefully prepared lecture fell forgotten when he saw Riddick sitting cross-legged to the left of the Lord Marshal’s desk, play-wrestling with a pair of his hellhounds.  One of the massive animals, the big male, was sprawled over the Lord Marshal’s back, snuffling at his skull; the animal was taking as much as its own weight as possible on its haunches, but from this angle, if it truly wanted to, it could snap Riddick’s neck as easily as breaking a twig.

 

“I got your rules,” Riddick drawled, though he slapped absently at the hellhound’s muzzle. The big male grudgingly let off, curling around his back instead, while the small female with the missing ear growled playfully and swiped at its tail.  “No throwing people I don’t like out of airlocks.  No bitching out counselors when they get boring.  No letting the animals walk about when I ain’t there or piddle over the doors of people I don’t like.”

 

“And no killing people in cryosleep,” Vaako snapped, folding his arms, his lips tight with anger.  “I’ve _told_ you about the rules, sir.  We have ritualized combat for a _reason_ , and even so, in any case, killing someone in cryosleep when they don’t have a chance to defend themselves is _forbidden_ -”

 

Vaako stumbled to a halt when both of the hellhounds began to growl in a low rumble, circling their master, their eerie, silvery eyes fixed on the First.  Riddick, on the other hand, had propped himself up by splaying hands behind him in a deceptively casual pose, his expression unreadable under his goggles.  Warily, all too aware of the spiking tension, Vaako fought the urge to go for the blaster at his belt.

 

“Vaako,” Riddick said mildly, “What, the fuck, are you talking about?”

 

“Commander Railk and two of his personal guard were murdered in cryosleep last star night,” Vaako said curtly, then added, “Sir.”

 

“And you start by accusing me?”

 

“So you’re telling me that you didn’t do it?”

 

“You Necromongers sure hit a lot of branches on the crazy tree when you fell out of it,” Riddick said, reaching out to tickle under the big male’s chin when it passed.  It sat down, and hesitantly, the small female did so as well.  “Let’s try this again.  There’s been a murder in cryosleep, which apparently is illegal around here even though beating people to death in the corridors or goin’ at them in their actual cabins ain’t.  And you think I did it.”

 

“Only a select few have access to the cryo chambers without armed guard,” Vaako said helplessly, his survival instincts wired up at the edge in the Lord Marshal’s tone.  “The Lord Marshal is one of them.  Also, the corpses had died of dagger wounds.  And one of them had bites taken out of his arms.”

 

“And then you must have hit a hell of a lot of branches on the stupid tree after you were done,” Riddick said, scratching behind the small female’s ears.  “Think of it this way.  Firstly, if I wanted to kill whoever it was-”

 

“Commander Railk.”

 

“Whatever.  Granted I ain’t got a problem about killing someone in cryosleep, but if I wanted to kill him and get away with it, why would I use daggers and my hellhounds?”

 

“Railk was very outspoken on the last Council meeting, when you announced your intention to start heading for… that place,” Vaako said delicately.  “The one that the Threshold showed you.  Maybe you wanted to make an example of him.”

 

“Oh, so he was that rat faced arsehole.” Riddick grunted.  “So someone did me a favor.”

 

“We have _rules_ ,” Vaako said sharply, exasperated by Riddick’s attitude, “The death penalty for anyone found guilty of murdering another person in cryosleep.  The Lord Marshal is not exempt, _sir_.”

 

“All right, so my question stands.  In that case, why the hell would I use weapons that would point straight at me?”

 

“You weren’t aware of the death penalty until just now.”

 

“Vaako, if I loosed the hounds on anything, they won’t just take a few bites out of non-vital areas.”

 

That part of the report had worried Vaako as well, but he kept his peace.  “The investigative commission is looking into the matter, Lord.”

 

“Sure.” Riddick sneered.  “You want me to cut my throat for you while you’re at it?”

 

The big male growled, but Vaako held his own temper.  “Strangely enough you haven’t managed to piss off _everyone_ on the investigative commission, sir.  Though you’re coming quite close to annoying one member already.”

 

“ _You_ got to be on the commission?”

 

“The second in command of the accused automatically becomes part of such a commission, _sir_.”

 

Riddick laughed, in his silent, rocking fashion, then he patted the big male, who sidled around Vaako and headed out to the corridor.  “All of the hounds are gonna go with you.  You can compare their bites to the marks on the body.  I trust you’ll bring all of them back without shooting any of them in the head.”

 

“Thank you, sir.” Vaako grit out, as the small female padded over to his side and sat down.  Riddick had already hauled himself up and into his chair, picking up the first acquisition notice to run his eyes over it.

 

“You really think I did it?”

 

“I had doubts.”

 

“You and the whole bloody fleet, I bet.” Riddick signed at the bottom of the notice, and the small female nudged politely at his knees.  “Well, get going, then.”

 

“You’re not particularly concerned.”

 

“These are your rules, they ain’t mine,” Riddick picked up the next holopad notice, scanning it thoughtfully.  “You want me to play along, I will.  But let me tell you something.  I didn’t do it, so if you, or anyone, comes for me trying to bestow some sort of ‘death penalty’, I won’t be goin’ kindly.”

 

At Vaako’s feet, the small female rumbled, not quite a purr, not quite a growl, and Vaako clenched his fists.  “Understood, sir.”

 

II

 

“Of course he would have reacted that way,” Dame Selune Vaako murmured, seated in a sinuous coil of bronze on the bed, seemingly perusing a holopad.  “You opened with an accusation.”

 

“He didn’t seem remorseful.”

 

“And would you be remorseful if you were innocent, dear husband?” Selune purred, tapping at the screen with one long, perfectly trimmed nail.  “Or would you have reacted with indignation?”

 

“He wasn’t cooperative either.” Vaako, however, removed his armor, scowling even as he did so, propping up the pieces on the stand and working on the buckles.  “Nor particularly interested in proving his innocence.”

 

“He may have crossed the Threshold and accepted his purpose, but that does not mean that he bears much love for our kind.”

 

“He should.  He is the Lord Marshal.”

 

“By accident.  And I might add, he is _still_ Lord Marshal only due to his own sufferance.”

 

Vaako sighed.  Convincing Riddick to stay on the fleet had been a monumental and ongoing effort over several months.  In the end, it became fairly obvious that Riddick had only done so due to a lack of immediate purpose and a simultaneous growing interest in Vaako himself that had only come to a comfortable arrangement about a month or so after Riddick had come back from the Threshold.

 

“Then what do you suggest?”

 

Selune drew one delicate wrist up, to trail her painted nails absently through her tightly bound hair, her lips pursed in thought.  “Did you test the hounds?”

 

“I did.  The results were not conclusive, but judging from the shape and pattern of the bites, it was not from any of them.” Unnervingly enough, the hellhounds had obliged, like clockwork, when he had tried to get them to rend chunks of meat from the corpse of a drugged slave to check their dentition and teeth patterns, and their master had not even been present.  And Riddick was right – the hounds were deadly, and usually ravenous.  Had they truly been loosed on a target, they would not have stopped at a few bites. 

 

“Assuming that Riddick is innocent,” Selune folded her long, elegant fingers in her lap, “You _are_ aware that this is the easiest solution to get rid of a sitting Lord Marshal who has already crossed the Threshold.  Framing him for a cryosleep murder.”

 

“Riddick will not go gently if he is called.”

 

“But against the combined might of an army? Or orbital cannons from the rest of the fleet?” Selune asked sweetly.  “If you think him guilty, husband, then perhaps we should negotiate a new set of quarters on another ship. Or,” she added, thoughtfully, as Vaako hesitated, “if you would _prefer_ him guilty.”

 

“God’s blood, woman, I share his _bed_ ,” Vaako growled, annoyed at Selune’s tone.

 

“And mine.  And as much as I am fond of you, husband, treachery, shifting alliances and ever changing balances in power is our way of life.” Selune smiled, inscrutable.  “Due to our laws I am bound to you.  So I ask you again, do you prefer him guilty?”

 

“If he is guilty, then he is guilty.  If he is not, then he is not.  There is no preference in the matter,” Vaako retorted coldly.

 

Selune sighed, tapping her manicured fingers against her lush lips.  “You are so very difficult, husband.  And perhaps you are being deliberately obtuse.  No? Well then, in that case, mayhap you should continue your investigations by checking the security feeds.”

 

“They have been altered.  The techs are baffled as to how it could have happened.  Riddick could have easily used the Lord Marshal’s clearance to-”

 

“If he had, it would have shown on the logs, would it not? Yet it did not.”

 

“If he was trying to hide his involvement-”

 

“Then he would not have killed Railk in such a manner.” Selune seemed pleased, happy whenever there was a thorny, political puzzle in the making.  “Railk was part of a group, always fond of meeting on the stardeck eight.  Perhaps you could interview his friends.  I will speak with his Dame.”

 

III

 

“So what were you doing on the night of the murder?” Vaako finally asked, when he had sorted out reports, requisitions, disputes, supply problems and a subspace engine malfunction with Riddick during their daily meeting at 1900 starship hours. 

 

“You’re fucking terrible as an investigator,” Riddick smirked.  Somehow, the day had restored the Lord Marshal’s good humor on the matter, possibly because Riddick had self-inserted himself into the day’s hand-to-hand combat drills and had wiped the floor with Commander Talbot, whom Vaako had once heard Riddick term a ‘fucking snake’. 

 

“And you’re even worse as a defendant.  Sir.”

 

“You know where I am every night, Vaako.” Rather like a big animal, Riddick seemed to enjoy routine where his life was not sought after or in immediate danger. 

 

“That means you don’t have an alibi.”

 

“Seeing as you weren’t there, sure.” Riddick smirked, and Vaako scowled at him.  Vaako had been occupied with military drills for the entire day before that, and had simply crawled back to his quarters to sleep afterwards. 

 

“You should be taking this investigation seriously, Lord Marshal.”

 

“You smell different,” Riddick got up from his chair, all silent, liquid grace, and the big female with the scarred muzzle lifted its head briefly from the ground beside the Lord Marshal’s desk, watching as Riddick drew Vaako up against him with a practiced palm at the small of the Commander’s back.  Vaako inhaled harshly as Riddick nuzzled him, shuddered as he pressed his tongue briefly against a purification mark, then the Lord Marshal purred, a rumbling sound that deepened appreciatively.  “Still think I’m guilty?”

 

“I don’t think you killed Railk.” Vaako tried and failed to keep the hitch from his tone.  “The evidence doesn’t add up.  Dame Railk was bewildered at his death.  She said that Railk had spoken to you a couple of times after his outburst and you didn’t seem to remember him.”

 

“Could be.  I meet a lot of perps in this job.”

 

“I wish you wouldn’t be so _flippant_ ,” Vaako growled, then grimaced and twisted against the Lord Marshal when teeth pressed over the purification mark instead, gasping.  “ _Riddick_.”

 

“Yeah, yeah.” Riddick followed the nip with another lap of his tongue, then he sauntered back to settle in his chair.  “I did some looking myself.”

 

“You did?” Vaako blinked, surprised that Riddick would have bothered. 

 

“Sure.  I like to know who my enemies are.”  Riddick jerked his chin at the big female, and it rose to its feet, shaking out its gray, spiky skin in a sibilant rattle, and yawned, showing rows of sharp teeth.  “That cryo room’s been locked down as evidence, yeah? I just put out a little rumor that I was going to send down one of my hounds to sniff around, pick up the scent of the murderer.” Riddick smiled lazily.  “You’ll be going with her, since she don’t work too well with locked doors.”

 

“There’ll be a lot of scents.  _I’ve_ been to look at the cryo room.  As has the rest of the team.”

 

“Maybe, maybe not.” Riddick shrugged, and folded his arms behind his head.  “Better hurry, Vaako.” 

 

 _The Lord Marshal_ , Vaako thought, scowling and hurrying for the exit, _was bloody insufferable_.  Even at the best of times.

 

IV

 

As it turned out, Vaako was attacked one corridor away from the cryo chambers by a handful of masked, skilled men, and if not for the presence of the big female it could have gone badly.  As it was, the hellhound sat proudly on the chest of the Necromonger whose neck it had just torn out, lapping at the long, shallow gash he had drawn across her flank in his dying moments. 

 

Vaako breathed out, then in, as guards approached belatedly, wide-eyed at the sight.  Ignoring them and the minor injuries he had himself suffered in the fray, Vaako dragged off the masks of his attackers.  Unsurprisingly, he did not recognize any of them, and their pockets and pouches were empty of anything but weapons. 

 

“Leave the bodies here and stand guard,” Vaako told the guards, then stared hard at the big female, wondering how to approach it.  It looked up, tilting its head, and got off the corpse.

 

 _Pack_ , Riddick had explained, in his annoyingly enigmatic way, when Vaako had last expressed curiosity about the relative intelligence of the hounds and their odd bond with the Lord Marshal himself.

 

“We are going to enter the cryo chamber,” Vaako said, feeling a little awkward for attempting this.  “I wish to know if the person who had killed Railk was any of these five.”

 

The hellhound shook itself out, and then ambled towards the cryochambers, snuffling at the ground on occasion.  Once within, watched over by Vaako and an anxious cluster of cryo technicians, the hellhound sniffed around the bloodied pods that had once held Railk and his men, then it growled to herself and padded back out and to the corridor.  It used one great, clawed paw to turn over the body of one of the assassins, and then sat down again, as though expecting a treat.

 

“Who is this man?” Vaako demanded of the guards, who looked startled at the display.  All of them shook their heads mutely – unsurprisingly – none knew.  With another sigh, Vaako set about barking orders.

 

Three hours after, Vaako returned to Riddick’s chambers with the big female, who instantly padded away, confident in the darkness as the door closed behind him.  Fabric rustled – the creature had curled up on the large bed – and there were a few welcoming churrs and growls.

 

“Got your man?” Riddick asked, somewhere to his right, but Vaako knew enough not to flinch.

 

“There was evidence that satisfied the investigative commission that Sergeant Lakos of the Eighty-third regiment was the murderer.”

 

“You don’t seem satisfied.” Riddick murmured, and big hands were closing over his hips, then sliding up for the buckles on his armor. 

 

“I think the evidence was planted.  The commission came to the conclusion mostly due to the fact that the Sergeant had attacked me.”

 

“Still, happy ending, hmm?” Riddick nipped up at the nape of his neck, a warm, solid bulk pressed behind him, and he smelled like leather and musk.  When he rubbed against Vaako, slow and lazy, the Commander shuddered, desire quick to pool within him. 

 

“By all regards… ah… it leaves too many loose ends.  Lakos could not have wiped the evidence from the security feeds.  And he had no grudge against Railk.  I’m thinking… _Lord Marshal_ , would you _stop_ -”

 

“I’m thinking someone hired him,” Riddick obliged, though the arm greaves still landed on the floor with heavy _thunks_.  “And he was green enough to get spooked at a bluff.  Means whoever it was, would’a been high up, and probably, the flagship ain’t his home ground, if he has to use lackeys as green as Lakos on a gamble like this.”

 

“I should check the communicators-” Vaako’s words were lost in a gasp as Riddick bit down on his scar again, purring this time.

 

“There’s been a conclusion.”

 

“Not a _good_ conclusion.  The puppeteer is still at large.”

 

“He can join the queue on people who want to kill me, far as I’m concerned.” Riddick shot back, and in the darkness before Vaako, there was an answering chorus of rumbling growls.  “But your rules have been satisfied, so now we’re going on mine.”

 

“ _Yours_?” Vaako asked, skeptical and acerbic.  “You have rules?”

 

“Sure.” Riddick spun him around, and the kiss was hard, rough, pressing confidently into his mouth and chuckling when he shuddered and arched.  “You want to wake me up so late, it better be to entertain me.”

 

“Rather than to inform you kindly of your innocence, you mean,” Vaako said dryly, though he allowed Riddick to walk him backwards into the bed, shuddering again when something with hot animal breath lapped him, rasping, over his forehead, and a big claw patted at the greaves on his feet.  The Lord Marshal settled over him, and Vaako could feel fingers working at his shoulder guards even as another deep chuckle drifted down.

 

“I was already convinced of my innocence.  But tell you what,” Riddick drawled, and a big, rough hand rucked up possessively under his undershirt, “You can put finding out who was behind it all on your to-do list, if it’s gonna make you any happier.”

 

“You’re intolerable,” Vaako informed his lord and master, but groped up for Riddick’s belt, even as something big, purring and heavy rubbed rattling spikes against his thigh. 

 

-fin-

  



End file.
